Military sexual assaults on men swept under rug
Some who report rapes wind up being prosecuted themselves
By Sally Jacobs - THE BOSTON GLOBE


EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- The call came shortly after dinner on a raw night this winter.

Mark Partridge sprang to the telephone, eager to talk to his 20-year-old son, Brian, who had been based for more than a year on the USS Ardent, a minesweeper patrolling the Persian Gulf.

Fulfilling a childhood dream to follow his father into service, it had been a moment of triumph when Brian landed a berth on the sleek gray ship.

But what his father now heard on the other end of the line was anything but triumphant. His only child was nearly hysterical, on the brink of tears.


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Army’s policy on gays cuts ROTC credits
By Jeremy Gonsior
Life Senior Reporter
 

Credit for two military science classes can no longer be earned.

 Maj. Gregg Mays, chairman of Military Science Department, said because the classes originally didn’t allow homosexuals to enroll in classes, a change was necessary.

“It came down to the complaint that these courses are not offered to everyone,” Mays said. “They were valid concerns. We are not in the business of causing problems on campus.”

By not giving credit for the courses, MSC 203: Military Science Basic Camp and MSC 303: Advanced Practicum in Military Science, which are only open to ROTC students, the military science department and the university can reach a compromise.


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Lesbian's mother Kuo hopes to form 'Parents of the Gay'
The China Post staff


"I wish to take all of you in my arms."

So writes a mother of a lesbian in an open letter on a gay Web site in Taipei.

Signing the letter as Mother Kuo, she recalls the shock she had when she was confronted by her lesbian daughter and her own transformation into a gay rights worker.

"Watching all of you doing what you can ¡X without complaint and regret ¡X for your (misunderstood) group, I am so moved and my heart aches for you," she tells the young gay activists.

That's why she professes to consider them all her children and wishes to take all of them in her bosom on behalf of their parents who may or may not know what they are.


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Welsh Archbishop speaks out on "marginilisation" fears in gay clergy row
Ben Townley, Gay.com UK


The archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, has committed himself to ensuring the Anglican Church does not perpetuate the "suffering and marginilisation" of gay people during the ongoing row over gay clergy.

Speaking at a meeting of the governing body last week, Dr Morgan said the debate over whether the church should recognise gay clergy and same-sex relationships should not lead to the persecution of LGB people.

"In many countries of or world people are being persecuted simply because of their sexual orientation," he said.

"In fact there are 80 countries in the world which persecute gay and lesbian people through their penal codes with punishments ranging from death to mutilation and imprisonment," he added.


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Evangelist Jimmy Swaggart Threatens To Kill Gays 
by Jan Prout
365Gay.com Newscenter
Toronto Bureau


(Toronto, Ontario) A Canadian television station has apologized publicly to viewers for a telecast of American evangelist Jimmy Swggart's television program in which he threatened to kill gays.

The program, aired last week on Omni 1, a Toronto multicultural station, and throughout the US, has also prompted an investigation by the Canadian Radio Television Commission, the government agency which regulates television.

During the program, a rambling sermon by Swaggart who is trying to rehabilitate himself after an arrest for soliciting a prostitute, the televangelist turned to the subject of gay marriage.

According to a transcript of the program, Swaggart said: "I'm trying to find the correct name for it ... this utter absolute, asinine, idiotic stupidity of men marrying men. ... I've never seen a man in my life I wanted to marry. And I'm gonna be blunt and plain; if one ever looks at me like that, I'm gonna kill him and tell God he died."


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More gays infected with HIV
Until June this year, 31 tested positive, versus 40 for the whole of last year
By Arlina Arshad

THE number of homosexuals infected with HIV has risen at such a rate that, if it continues, will reach a 12-year high by the end of this year.

Thirty-one homosexuals were infected with the Human Immuno-deficiency Virus (HIV) in the first six months of this year, compared to 40 for the whole of last year.

HIV is the virus that causes Aids. The number of infected homosexuals has been rising steadily since 2001.

According to the Health Ministry's latest statistics, there were 12 HIV-infected homosexuals in 2000, 26 in 2001 and 30 in 2002.